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30 Reasons(& Photos) to Love Monsoon, from a decade of Chasing Rains in India!

Tuesday, August 08, 2017

[Meghalaya | Monsoon 2013]

Born in the month of June on a day when heavens opened up like a flooded reservoir, my parents tell me my name is inspired by the dark blue of a stormy evening. Perhaps that why I have always felt a strong connection with the monsoon. On all those monsoon Sunday afternoons where my family huddled up in the living room watching the special movies telecast on DD National, I remember sneaking outside, trying hard to make sense of the deep nostalgia the rains evoked in me. A child (and an adult) with a hyperactive imagination, I weaved strange stories of a past life to explain to urge to drop everything and watch when it rained. Two decades later I was still no where close to understanding that obsession but I learned I didn't need to understand it at all. I could just revel in it instead. Since then, I've spent the next decade chasing monsoon every year in every possible corner of the country, filling up a jar full of memories tinged with stormy skies and surreal views.

An ode to my obsession
To love monsoon
Here are 30 Reasons.

#1because sunny days may be beautiful and all that but they are no match to the spectacle of a monsoon sky! There are few sights as glorious as the ephemeral minutes between black, roiling clouds morphing into a thick curtain of rain.

Garo Hills, Meghalaya | Monsoon 2013

#2 because rivers come to life and how!

Rivers flow where there were none and where they were, they thrive. There's no greater joy than a flowing river and love how monsoon makes it happen.

Sharavathi River, Karnataka | Monsoon 2010

#3because thunderstorms light up the skies with an ardent fervour! A normal person would probably balk at the idea but I personally love it when I get to witness the freakish glory of nature's fury, like flashes of lightning and loud thunder piercing the stillness of the night.

Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal | Monsoon 2017

#4because it teaches us that life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain. Props to Vivian Greene for that great line! 🙏

Garo Hills, Meghalaya | Monsoon 2013

#5because it rains even in the desert and it is nothing like we've imagined. It's plain gorgeous!

Around Jaisalmer, Rajasthan | Monsoon 2013

#6 because wild flowers come into existence!

You see, delicate flowers growing wild and free is the ultimate testament to a region's pristine condition in my book.

Kudremukh National Park, Karnataka |

#7because waterfalls big and small get a new lease of life and spring up everywhere, from mountain slopes to road sides.

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#8because the romance of going on a long walk a on rainy day and feeling the force of monsoons through the flimsy comforts of an umbrella is enough to make us forget all our blues!

Munnar, Kerala | Monsoon 2013

#9because rainbows are abundant this season and what's life without a bit of color in our skies? ;)

Garo Hills, Meghalaya | Monsoon 2013

#10because misty morning scenes set amidst lush greenery that seem straight out a fairy tale play out in the monsoon months.

Madikeri, Karnataka | Monsoon 2012

#11because when it rains, a gorgeous brook like this is just a stop-by-the-roadside away! No more hiking in dense jungles in reach a tiny trickle, monsoon magic at your doorstep if you will.

Goa | Monsoon 2010

#12 because Sonki, a true blue monsoon special! 🌻
Oh my god, Sonki, these tiny yellow flowers literally carpet the entire Sahyadris during monsoons. I have never ever seen flowers mass bloom to this extent, they were everywhere during my trek to Ratangad one monsoon. Vast swathes of the upper reaches were packed with these flowers, so much that you could see streaks of yellow from a kilometer away!

Ratangad, Maharashtra | Monsoon 2016

#13because it gives us a reason to let the inner child out. Look at me frolicking around that gorgeous tree without a worry in the world despite having a long ride in the dark waiting after this to the homestay.

Mandalpatti, Coorg | Monsoon 2012

#14because there's no better time to go on a road trip!

Maharashtra | Monsoon 2012

#15because the parched lands get a new lease of life and we only have the rains to thank for that!

Shettihally, Karnataka | Monsoon 2011

#16because you can see it happening, a trickle becoming a roar. That's how you know everything is coming alive around you, when it rains.

Uttara Kannada, Karnataka | Monsoon 2011

#17because even dull and boring towns can look pretty when it rains!

Ganesh Tok, Sikkim | Monsoon 2011

#18because even deserts sprout greenery when it rains. And the fact that it is ephemeral, makes it all the more surreal, like this oasis in the middle of a desert.

Thar Desert, Rajasthan | Monsoon 2013

#19because you can see that favorite mountain of yours is changing colors for good, soon it will all be glistening in a lovely shade of green that only rains can paint!

Palani Ranges, Tamilnadu | Monsoon 2011

#20because our little hearts overflow with joy at the very sight of heart-shaped lakes brimming with water! 😉

Chembra Peak, Wayanad, Kerala | Monsoon 2012

#21because there's an unfathomable charm to scurrying away from pelting rain and thunderstorm to hide under a ridiculously small tree, seeking protection from the glorious fury unleashing above you!

Mannavanur, Tamilnadu | Monsoon 2011

#22because 'tis the season for hiking! There's no better time to hike in the Sahyadris but monsoons, unless you are rock climbing of course. If the forests of Karnataka maintain some semblance of greenery even during harsh summers, Sahyadris are depressingly bone dry and barren brown in every other season except the rainy season. And what a blasphemy it would be to miss its glorious beauty when it rains!

Garbett Point, Matheran, Maharashtra | Monsoon 2016

#23because petrichor! Need I say more? 😉

Nelliampathy Hills, Kerala | Monsoon 2016

#24because the sustenance we so need gets its sustenance during the rains, just look at those lush fields and the gentle flow of that seasonal river!

Almora, Uttarakhand | Pre-Monsoon 2015

#25because the abundant rains paint not only the earth green, but also water! Monsoons bring out the beauty in almost everything, don't you think?

Wilson Dam, Bhandardara, Maharashtra | Monsoon 2016

#26because monsoons show you a new side of a destination you didn't give a second thought to earlier but now you cannot believe you didn't see this beauty all along.

Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh | Monsoon 2016

#27because when a ghostly veil of mist ensconces the landscape, it hides the ugly gashes of civilization, making everything seem all the more alluring.

#29because it is otherwise impossible to trace the contours of the deep chasms and ravines of our favourite mountains if not for the fleeting monsoon clouds that effortlessly slip in and out of these inaccessible geological features!

Ratangad, Maharashtra | Monsoon 2016

#30because monsoons do not represent gloom and doom to me, like it does for many. It only makes me happy, immensely.

Coorg, Karnataka | Monsoon 2014

So tell me in the comments!
Your stories, favorite photos or reasons from my list, to love monsoons?

i am hardcore pluvophile and loved your blogs. seeing your pics makes me tingy in my heart and wish to visit these beauties again n again. in life would like to settle in one such town someday :) .. last july been to munnar-allepey-kodai-ooty, this time off to goa-konkan

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About me

A travel writer and photographer by profession, I am an offbeat and adventure travel enthusiast. Eschewing touristy things and sightseeing, I prefer to trek or travel to remote corners in search of extraordinary stories. I recently quit my 7-year job as a Software Engineer to do all of this full time! Words and Images in BBC, NatGeo Traveller, Travel+Leisure, Mint, Indian Express and more.

Head over to About me page to know more. You can contact me at i.thewanderingsoul@gmail.com